All Things in Time
by bearfeathers
Summary: A series of Capsicoul one-shots.
1. A Drunk Kiss

Being that he's incapable of inebriation, Steve drinks for the social aspect these days. Just because he can't get drunk doesn't mean he's going to be the wet towel of the group. Plus, having a guaranteed designated driver isn't such a bad thing.

In the beginning, it was just himself and the other Avengers. Steve had lost count of the number of times Tony had attempted to wrangle Phil into joining them. Every attempt was met with polite refusal and Steve had come to accept that Phil had drawn a professional line in the sand. Or so he thought. It changes on, of all days, Valentine's Day.

"Aw, come on boss, just a couple of drinks," Clint says, leaning back against the sofa.

Instead of the usual decline of their offer that Steve has come to expect, he's surprised to see Phil pause in thought. Maybe it's the fact that Tony's not around, but whatever the reason, Phil accepts.

"You're sure you don't have plans?" Steve asks, scooting to make room for him on the couch. "I figured you and your cellist—"

"Audrey and I broke up months ago," Phil says, nodding in thanks when Natasha hands him a drink.

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize," Steve offers, inwardly kicking himself for putting his foot in his mouth.

"Don't be, it was one of the more agreeable break-ups I've had," Phil says with a quick huff of laughter. "Audrey's a good person. She deserved more than I could give and things were never quite the same after… well, anyway, it was months ago and we're still on good terms."

An awkward silence descends over them as they each feign extreme interest in whatever's in their own glass. There's no need to ask what the 'after' meant in this case and maybe they're all feeling a little bad about the fact that it had resulted in the termination of what had apparently been an otherwise happy relationship. Perhaps sensing this, Phil clears his throat and tugs at his tie, leaning back as he addresses them all.

"Frankly, I'm more surprised that none of you have plans," he exclaims.

"These are my plans," Bruce says from the adjacent armchair.

"Believe me, I tried setting Steve up with about a dozen different people, but he claimed he didn't want a date just because it was Valentine's Day," Natasha says.

"I just don't think it's a good reason, is all," Steve says. "I'd rather let something like that happen naturally and this just seemed… forced."

He eyes Natasha meaningfully. She knows full well why he had refused all of those dates. Thankfully she's never said as much. Steve has quietly nursed his growing attraction to Phil without much incident and he'd like to keep it that way. Thankfully, as the night wears on, she doesn't seem intent on parting with their secret, regardless of the fact that the alcohol has been flowing quite freely.

Steve's never seen Phil drunk. He's never even seen him pick up a drink before tonight, actually. It brings out a relaxed, fun-loving side of the agent that Steve's only caught glimpses of thusfar. That may be the reason why, when Clint suggests a game of Truth or Dare, Phil is more that game to play. It proceeds fairly innocently, with only the occasional wound to one's pride or ego to report. That is, until they've reached the point where they

"Alright, Phil," Natasha says, leaning into Clint. "Truth or Dare?"

"I'm feeling daring," Phil says with a slow grin.

There's a moment, just before Natasha speaks, when Steve knows that the evening is about to take a very different turn. Looking like the cat that swallowed the canary, Natasha props her chin on her knuckles and smiles like a Cheshire Cat at the agent.

"I dare you to kiss Steve," she proclaims.

"He doesn't have to," Steve says, just as she finishes speaking.

"I don't mind," Phil says. He looks to Steve, blue-grey eyes heavy lidded but earnest. "If you don't. If you do, that's fine."

"No, I don't mind. I just…" he says, pausing to wet his lips. "You're sure you don't mind?"

"I don't mind," Phil assures him.

"So we both… don't mind, then," Steve says.

"Oh my god, will you two fucking kiss already? Jesus Christ," Clint says, throwing a chocolate wrapper in their direction.

"No one rushed you when you were dared to strip naked," Bruce points out.

"Possibly because it was something none of us wanted to see," Phil adds.

"Yeah, well this is something some of us have been waiting to see so go, make with the kissing already," Clint demands.

"Well, we wouldn't want to keep his lordship waiting," Phil says.

"Apparently not," Steve says.

Even drunk, Steve has to admit that Phil certainly knows what he's doing. Enough so that Steve's mind is racing with thoughts of what it would be like to kiss the man sober. But he wants to focus on the here and now, wants to make it last. So he closes his eyes, blocking out the rest of the world and, for a time, forgetting that there's anyone in the room other than him and Phil.

He's surprised when he feels the tip of Phil's tongue slowly tracing the seam of his lips, but doesn't even think of stopping here. He parts his lips, letting him in and deepening the kiss. His hands rise to frame Phil's face, eliciting a soft, pleased hum from the agent that vibrates against his own lips.

"I said kiss him, Phil, not find his fillings."

Natasha's amused words cut through the fog, disrupting the moment. Slowly, they part from one another, neither saying a word. Phil sways on the spot, looking flushed and satisfied and sleepy all at once and god does Steve want to do that again.

"Okay," Phil says, his eyes sliding to Steve. "Truth or dare."

"Dare," Steve says, breathless but without hesitation.

"I dare you to do that again."

* * *

Phil's head feels like it's the home to a nest of angry hornets when he wakes. He knows he'd had far too much to drink the night prior but at the very least, he'd had the presence of mind to close his drapes.

Except those aren't his drapes.

And then memories of the rest of the night comes flooding back. Kissing Steve. Being too drunk to drive home. Steve insisting that he take his bed. Insisting that Steve join him.

Glancing over his shoulder confirms his suspicions: Steve is lying beside him, fast asleep. Doing his best not to disturb him, Phil slowly begins to try and get up from the bed. He's tiptoeing towards the door when it becomes evident that despite his best efforts, Steve had been woken.

"Are you leaving?"

Phil turns on the spot at the whispered question.

"Well, I figured you'd like me to," Phil says in reply. "It's usually the polite thing to do when you drunkenly crash in someone's bed."

Steve sits up at that, his elbows resting on his knees.

"Do you remember how, last night, I said I didn't want a date just because it was Valentine's Day?" Steve asks him.

Phil nods, wondering if this is going where he thinks it is.

"Well, it's true. I don't want one just for Valentine's Day," Steve tells him. "I was kind of hoping you might like to try out that kiss again today."

"Oh," Phil says dumbly. "I… yeah. I would."

"Do you… want to come back to bed?" Steve asks.

The end up doing much more than kissing and apparently neither of them mind that either.


	2. A Nap

Steve had harbored great expectations for this Valentine's Day. He and Phil had planned out the whole day. They'd made the dinner reservations, bought the flowers, prepared dessert, bought wine, bought candles, bought some supplies for the bedroom later… It was so well-planned that Steve should have known there'd be a kink in the line somewhere.

When Steve drags himself back to their apartment after the mission that was supposed to be finished by yesterday, he expects to find Phil waiting for him. His tardiness means that he's already missed around half of the things they'd had planned, so he imagines Phil isn't going to be particularly pleased.

Except Phil's not in the apartment. Curiously, it's completely empty and any of his calls to the agent's cell phone go straight to voice mail. He spends an hour wondering if perhaps Phil is _that_ angry about the whole thing before he hears the lock click. In comes Phil, looking as tired and disheveled as Steve himself is, which is something of a surprise given that Phil had taken the day off.

"What happened to _you_?" Steve asks, too sore to rise from where he's seated.

"An unexpected little HYDRA cell. We've got it under control," Phil says, tugging his tie loose and toeing out of his shoes.

He's limping slightly as he makes his way over to the sofa, and Steve's arms open to receive him.

"Today was supposed to be your day off," Steve says, kissing his temple.

"Just like you were supposed to be home last night," Phil says, nosing at the collar of his uniform.

"Mm, true," Steve answers. "It's kind of taken a wrecking ball to our Valentine's Day plans, though."

"Doesn't mean the day's been ruined," Phil assures him. "There's plenty of daylight left. And moonlight, while we're at it."

"Phil, I've gotta be honest… I'm pretty beat," Steve admits reluctantly.

"Which is why I propose a nap," Phil declares, rising slowly and tugging Steve's hand.

"A nap?" Steve echoes curiously, following him with a soft groan as the motion tugs at sore muscles.

"A nap," Phil repeats, leading him towards the bedroom. "Our reservations aren't until 8. It's just past noon, now. We can get a good few hours of sleep, shower and get changed for dinner. We'll save all the things we were going to do inbetween for tomorrow. And when we get back…"

"That sounds perfect," Steve sighs, as they shut the door behind them.

It's like a weight off his shoulders as they shut the blinds and close the drapes before disrobing and crawling into bed. There are new bruises, new wounds on Phil's body, as there are on his own, and as tired as he is, Steve can't help but take stock.

"This one's pretty ugly," Steve says, his fingers lightly brushing over the gauze on Phil's thigh. "You were limping."

"Just sore. I'll live," Phil claims, his own fingers busy finding every bump and bruise on Steve's body. Inevitably, he finds the healing tissue along his ribcage and makes a soft noise of concern. "This on the other hand…"

"Is fine," Steve says, grabbing him by the wrist and pressing a kiss to his open palm. "I'll heal, too."

Phil pulls a face and he knows they'll have a talk about this, but for now the agent seems willing to let the matter rest. They lie facing one another. Steve is scooted a little further down the bed than Phil is, allowing the agent to wrap his arms around Steve's shoulders and for Steve to do the same with Phil's waist. Nuzzling the shorter man's collarbone, Steve sighs in contentment, happy to be home at last.

This is where he feels safest. This is where he can truly drop his guard, where he can fully relax. When he and Phil are both here, he trusts himself not to have to sleep with one eye open. His hand slowly caresses Phil's hip as Phil's fingers gently slide through the hair at the back of his head. There will be plenty of time for Valentine's Day fun later on, but for now, he's thankful for a warm bed and the man that's in it.


End file.
